Thematic critical alaysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Thematic critical alaysis - Essay Example Isolation may be of two forms: deliberate or forced. Deliberate, in the sense that the individual chose to isolate himself from the world for a time, perhaps to evaluate his actions and others' reactions towards them and identify the time his views were questioned. At this point, he might think that he is in the position to judge others or occurrences as either appropriate or otherwise. He becomes the point of reference--he sets standards, which might be way beyond what is generally acceptable. During isolation, he may re-construct reality and the pieces that have been altered may find its way back to its recent condition. He might even check his motives and see whether he should accept others' belief system. This is the time that he goes back from where nature dictates him to be: looking up and not looking down. Forced isolation, on the other hand, occurs when the individual cannot control himself anymore and his construction of reality goes against every dictates of society; even to the point of questioning God for the supposed ambiguity in his perspectives. In the process, he would create a make believe world where the concept of "right" and "wrong" is based on what he believes is "right" and "wrong." Hence, he is considered by society in the verge of insanity. Eventually, he is sent to a mental institution and stays there until considered by medical practitioners mentally fit. Such has been the case of Esther Greenwood, the protagonist in Sylvia Plath's The Bell Jar. The story chronicles Esther's descent to madness and her struggle to escape from it. "From the first page of The Bell Jar, with Esther Greenwood describing a day in New York City during the summer of 1952, when she is a guest-editor of Mademoiselle magazine, Sylvia Plath vividly re-creates the perspective of a depressed, highly intelligent, sensitive young woman who feels herself losing contact with reality (Shields, 1995)." Quite contradictory to her present situation: a person who could be considered has reached mastery of her craft (since she is now occupying the editor's post and not just an ordinary freelance writer) are the accompanying images - "depressedsensitive," hence creating a character who is feels lacking in every sense that she feels she has lost contact with reality. What has caused her mental instability Perhaps her hostility toward men and the double standards set by society on men and women. Esther's outer personality and her inner identity are in constant conflict throughout the novel. She assesses her past life, especially the value of studying for academic awards, her present desire for personal fulfillment as a woman, and her need to choose a professional career for the future that will both support her financially and fulfill her aesthetically. Her inability to find solutions that will include all of these needs drives her into a reclusive mental state. At this point, it is important to note that "the novel emerges from a specific context: it was written by an American living in London during a period of heated political debate about the future of Americanness, about a period in the U.S. ten years earlier" (Baldwin, 2004). It is the time when the idea of female containment is overly used. "Containment" is the term coined by George Kennan in 1947 in "The Sources of Soviet Conduct" to

Deconstruction Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Deconstruction - Essay Example Allan Poe was born in in 1809, in Boston. His father was called David Poe while the mother was Elizabeth Arnold Hopkins. He lost his parents before he was three, and he had to move to Virginia to live with a wealthy tradesman called John Allan. John took Poe as one of his sons. Poe went to private school and conflicts occurred between him and his guardians when he decided to pursue literary works. He attended university of Virginia, but his dropped after the first year. He had gambling debts and his guardians refused to settle the debts. He joined the army and became sergeant major. He later quit the army. He wrote many literary works. He wrote many poems when he was in West point. His life became miserable when he became a heavy drinker and smoker. He went through many problems in his live that helped him write many poems. His nature of being a heavy drinker is even realized in â€Å"The Cask of Amontillado†. His literary talent would not have been that interesting if were no t the way his behavior and character influenced his writing. His love for alcohol helped him incorporating the abuse of alcohol in his work. A clear evidenced in â€Å"The Cask of Amontillado†, where he used Fortunato show the effects of heavy drinking in the society. The names that have been used in Poe’s work have some hidden meaning. ... The name sherry could be used to mean a titular amontillado. Therefore, in Italian, it represents a Montilla wine. Therefore, there is a â€Å"relationship between the way amontillado is produced and the way Montresor is using Fortunato† (Lewis, 179). Theory of deconstruction is further illustrated trough names used on the Poe’s work and some activities that are taking place. Meanings of the names that are used are related to the activities that take place in this literary work. One of the related activities includes the way Montresor is treating Fortunato and the process that is involved during the production of Montilla wine. â€Å"Montilla wine is manufactured by allowing yeast to grow in a pipe. This yeast can only grow under certain conditions. These conditions include leaving two spaces open on the cask that is used. The wine should be protected from oxygen in order to allow fermentation to take place. If oxygen is allowed to have contact with the yeast, the wine will not be produced with the required standards. This entire process should result in production of sweet wine† (Lewis, 181). This process of manufacturing mantilla wine is directly related to the process that Montresor uses in revenging on Fortunato. Montresor views Fortunato as his sweet pretender who has been induced by alcohol. Montresor’s behavior seems to be sweet to Fortunato. This is because his behavior has been induced with alcohol and he not able to realize Montresor’s intention. Montresor enjoys the alcohol effect on Fortunato since he knows he (Montresor) is going to achieve his goal. The alcohol content in Fortunato’s body prevents him from refining himself. Another contradiction in the story comes out when the